Renée White named arts and sciences dean at Simmons College
Simmons College
May 10, 2011
Renée T. White, Ph.D., a leading expert in gender, race, and HIV/AIDS, has been appointed dean of the Simmons College School of Arts and Sciences in Boston. Her appointment begins September 1.
As dean of the Simmons College School of Arts and Sciences, White will lead Simmons's undergraduate women's college and co-educational graduate programs, both of which are known for integrating liberal arts, professional studies, and experiential learning. She also will oversee educational leadership, financial management, faculty and curricular review and development, tenure and promotion, participation in campus-wide strategic initiatives, community outreach, and resource development for the undergraduate and graduate programs in the School of Arts and Sciences. A prolific writer, White is the co-author of three books including the acclaimed "Spoils of War: Women of Color, Cultures, & Evolutions," and author of "Putting Risk in Perspective: Black Teenage Lives in the Era of AIDS."
"Renée White is a brilliant scholar who is poised to lead the School of Arts and Sciences in an exemplary manner," said Simmons College Provost Charlena Seymour. "Her love of teaching and learning is evident in everything that she does."
Said Simmons College President Helen Drinan: "We are impressed with her great mind and her great heart; her impact on the college will be longstanding. We are confident that she will serve Simmons with great wisdom and wit."
White currently is a professor of sociology and Black studies at Fairfield University, where she was appointed the university's first Academic Coordinator for Diversity and Global Citizenship, and helped develop Service for Justice, a sophomore residential community focused on diversity and social justice. White was a Wye Faculty Fellow at the Aspen Institute, and she was selected as a Delegate for Vision 2020, a national initiative dedicated to gender equity. Her areas of research and teaching include HIV/AIDS, reproductive health, race theory, and social inequality; she is a specialist on issues of sexuality and social justice, particularly related to women of color. She has taught at Central Connecticut State University and Purdue University.
